I purchased the GE with the full extension pull out ice bin. It's great. I alway make the first drink and then people are on their own. It's great as people can use the ice scoop and not their bare hands which just grosses me out! This replaced a SZ and I was just going to order a SZ over the phone. I had second thoughts and went to look at them. What idiot at SZ put the ice maker 6 inches off the floor!? The older ones had the freezer on the top. There is no real freezer in the GE but the ice bin is great! It has a switch to turn off the icemaker instead of the wire arm. I would either pre make the ice as I had 4 fridges with ice makers or buy the bagged. I would let the GE fill the bin and then shut the ice maker off. Once it was empty I would just dump more ice in it and use it as an ice bucket as you don't have to bring the temp down in an entire freezer just the bin and due to the size it takes no time at all. No ice melting in the bucket. I think it is the best thing since sliced bread! Good luck on your search!

All, I bought a Marvel beverage center 6 years ago for our kitchen to replace a no-name cheapo that froze over (ice sheet on back wall). Frustrated to have paid $1,500 for the Marvel only for it to suffer the same fate 5-3/4 years after buying it. See pic of it below sitting, turned off. Unfortunately, Marvel wouldn't honor the 5 year warranty, so I'm stuck with a decision - pay the $750 (yes, $750) to repair it and risk it failing again, or ponying up $2k+ for one that might last longer. I've been researching these the last few days. After talking to two repair companies, several retailers and the technical folks at SubZero, Perlick and True, I've learned quite a bit about these expensive little bastards. There seem to be three price bands $1000 and under (Danby, GE, Avallon, etc.), the mid-tier ($1k - $2.5k) brands like Marvel, Uline, Frigidaire, Sub Zero (high end of the middle, around $2,500) and Perlick and True (top end, around $3,500). My opinion (I'm not an expert, just synthesizing what I've learned) is that the low and mid tier brands have comparable internals. They differ mostly in terms of features (lighting, stainless, shelving, temp control unit, etc.) Some of the low end ones (like Avallon) do a convincing job of looking like high end professional ones. But as one of my appliance repairpeople said, looks can be deceiving. She (Maywood Appliance Repair in Chicago, Chicago Heating and Cooling) said that there's a difference in the internal, sealed system parts (evaporator, condenser and coils, compressor, etc.) . Some use cooling plate technology (rather than forced air) to cool the inside of the unit which is both inefficient and works the compressor and internal components harder (shortening service life). Some are also marketed as undercounter, but in the fine print (or installation instructions) insist on 3" - 5" around the unit (or the back, at least) to allow it to breathe and to dissipate. In short (according to repairwoman), the low end brands are engineered to be throwaway. Unfortunately, that was the experience I had with my mid-tier Marvel. My father in law has had bad luck with U-Line, too, so lump them in that category. The high end brands like Perlick and True are overengineered and seem to be engineered to last between 5 and 12 years (based on warrantys offered). Both can be bought with stainless interior and exterior, larger and upgraded coils and compressor and better, forced air cooling. This helps them cool down faster, work less hard when doing so, and maintain temp longer. The both claim coated coils to reduce the effects of corrosion. The Perlick Signature has a variable speed compressor that (like newer Air Conditioning compressors) is variable speed so it is more efficient, quieter, cools down faster and uses less energy. SubZero's less expensive, but it has a small (215 BTU) compressor, which worries me. But they have a good warranty and excellent customer service, and claim they are engineered to last 20 years (so why don't they offer a 20 yr warranty?) so maybe it's worth saving $1k versus True and Perlick to get one. I think both of my units failed because they worked too hard to keep cool (my house is set at a normal temp, nothing else unusual about it). I'm still struggling paying a massive premium to get a unit properly engineered for my space. I'll let you know what I decide in the next couple of days. Hope this was helpful!

Each shelf has a pair of glides that it fits into. Both shelves and glides are removable. It is possible to disassemble the interior into a pile of shelves and a pile of glides. I found the glides for shelves and wine racks to be nearly indistinguishable, but not fully substitutable between shelves and wine racks. So keep the racks with their glides, shelves with their glides. Otherwise, either set of the correct dimension will work in a given unit. The Signature unit is quieter than the computer I'm typing this on in the same room. (The computer case has several fans, but most run at reduced speed.) In the dead of night if distant from both I can usually barely detect whether the refrigerator or wine reserve is on. Neither would likely interfere with someone falling asleep in the same room in a comfortable chair (I attest). The Signature is quieter than my SZ 632 48-inch refrigerator/freezer, which I can just hear at night when near it. Then again, the SZ is more than four times the volume. I'm not sure I can think of a good argument for paying the cost of most anything. In this case, one gets a lot of stainless steel, apparent high reliability, good control of temperature, US made (not sure about the electronics parts or motor), and, if needed, a telephone answered by someone trying to be helpful. I guess if an aphorism is called for, then I would submit that one may get less than he pays for, but almost never more than he pays for. If an economics view is called for, then I would submit that most of what we call money is actually credit, created mostly by the Federal Reserve System out of thin air, and subject to embezzlement (inflation), extortion (taxes), and now in vogue, confiscation (bail-ins). So if you don't want a pile of gold decorating your room, why not buy a Perlick and have your own Ale Reserve System? :) kas

I have Perlick. Mine are stainless interiors, not black. Not sure when they made that change or if it is an option -- or what else they may have changed, but they started as a commercial supplier and you will find their products in restaurant, stadiums and behind bars where there is heavy use - a lot of opening and closing. They are built to take that keep up with heavy use, and since we were putting ours in our breakfast room and near the door to the yard and pool for beverage and snack service all day long (to reduce traffic across the kitchen), we wanted something that could take regular heavy use. I think they are the best made. Subzero is probably second, but I also had a configuration/size issue with them.